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The Evergreen Freedom Foundation, a conservative budget watchdog group, has been railing at Gov. Gary Locke for giving the Boeing Co. too many tax breaks and enticements to persuade the aerospace giant to assemble the new 7E7 jetliner in Washington state. Maybe the governor et al did give Boeing too much stuff, but the alternative--Boeing assembling the project elsewhere--was worse.

Yes, even to the same Evergreen Freedom Foundation.

Turns out the group also was riled up that the governor was not doing enough to keep Boeing here.

The Evergreen Freedom Foundation sent a letter to state lawmakers June 3, 2003, that said: "Seventeen days and 76 votes will tell us if our state has what it takes to keep Boeing and its thousands of jobs in Washington...

"Governor Locke's response has been to issue news releases and host press conferences, but it's clear that glitzy headlines and ambitious words will not convince Boeing (or any other company) to stick around. Those words must be backed by immediate and decisive action.''

Which is it, folks? Granted, whining is part of the job description, but it would be more credible if the lament was consistent or easy to follow.